In His Latest Bout With the Press, Donald Trump Outdoes Even His Usual Outrageous Displays of Misogyny

It’s no secret President Donald Trump has a tumultuous relationship with the free press, which he has called the “enemy of the people” and “fake news.” But lately, it’s hard not to notice that he seems to especially enjoy demeaning female reporters in particular. Sure, we had inklings of this last year, when journalist Caitríona Perry of RTÉ News went to question him during a press conference, and he simply replied, “Caitríona Perry, she has a nice smile on her face,” as though she was another contestant in one of his former beauty pageants, but flash forward to today, and the president really amped up his—unfortunately frequent—displays of misogyny toward those female journalists who attempted to probe him on crucial trade issues.

At the press conference, held in the White House’s Rose Garden, the president answered questions on the renegotiated NAFTA deal between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, which was announced on Sunday. When an ABC News reporter, Cecilia Vega, paused to gather her question about Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, Trump replied, “She’s shocked that I picked her. She’s in a state of shock.” When she replied, “I’m not. Thank you, Mr. President,” he swiftly replied, “I know you’re not thinking, you never do.” (She has since responded to the moment on Twitter, simply stating, “A news conference means you get to ask whatever question you want to ask. #FirstAmendment.”)

It didn’t end there. When a different reporter also turned the line of questioning from trade agreements to Kavanaugh, who is currently being investigated by the FBI for three allegations of sexual misconduct, Trump interrupted her and replied, “Don’t do that. That’s not nice,” waving his finger at her as though scolding a small child. Behind Trump, his very white, very male gang of aides snickered and smiled, as though egging him on. When he was asked if he thought Kavanaugh lied about his alcohol use during his Senate testimony last week, though, Trump sided with him, saying, “I don’t think he did . . . I was surprised at how vocal he was about the fact that he likes beer. This is not a man who has said he was perfect when it comes to alcohol.”

This isn’t the first time Trump has used his global podium to troll women, or the women’s rights movement. Earlier this summer, Trump mocked the #MeToo movement during an appearance in Montana. In his speech, he suggested that he would like to test Sen. Elizabeth Warren for Native American heritage, not before adding, “but we have to do it gently because we’re in the #MeToo generation.”